TRAFALGAR SQUARE’S black lions are treasured, albeit taken for granted, in much the same way that the animal paintings of their creator are among the nation’s most beloved, but disdained artworks. Sir Edwin’s Landseer’s The Monarch of the Glen, Dignity and Impudence and The Old Shepherd’s Chief Mourner exert emotional appeal, but are ignored in fashionable art circles.
The regal poise of the bronze quartet of lions beneath Nelson’s Column astounds the casual passer-by, even as others sprawl all over them to have pictures taken. This is part of their charm: the lions are imposing and dignified, but not too lofty to discourage affection. They are grand adornments of the street scene, yet reflective of the square’s friendly informality.
The commission, when it arrived in 1858, was controversial. Landseer was, after all, a painter, not a sculptor. However, he was the age’s foremost animal artist, renowned for his painstaking approach to anatomical detail. He was a favourite in Society’s upper circles and his works had mass appeal. He was also fascinated by lions. He had visited the Tower of London menagerie, dissected the big cats, sketched and painted them.
Frederic G. Stephens’s 1880 biography recounts an evening when friends assembled in Landseer’s home in St John’s Wood, London. The visitors were somewhat alarmed when the gathering was interrupted by a manservant who, with Jeevesian imperturbability, entered the room to ask of his master: ‘Did you order a lion, sir?’ They were relieved to learn that an elderly lion had died at the Zoological Gardens in nearby Regent’s Park and it was clearly a natural response to place it in a cart and drive it to the artist’s gates. From it arose the fine study The Old Lion, Nero.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Tales as old as time
By appointing writers-in-residence to landscape locations, the National Trust is hoping to spark in us a new engagement with our ancient surroundings, finds Richard Smyth
Do the active farmer test
Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts
SOS: save our wild salmon
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish
Into the deep
Beneath the crystal-clear, alien world of water lie the great piscean survivors of the Ice Age. The Lake District is a fish-spotter's paradise, reports John Lewis-Stempel
It's alive!
Living, burping and bubbling fermented masses of flour, yeast and water that spawn countless loaves—Emma Hughes charts the rise and rise) of sourdough starters
There's orange gold in them thar fields
A kitchen staple that is easily taken for granted, the carrot is actually an incredibly tricky customer to cultivate that could reduce a grown man to tears, says Sarah Todd
True blues
I HAVE been planting English bluebells. They grow in their millions in the beechwoods that surround us—but not in our own garden. They are, however, a protected species. The law is clear and uncompromising: ‘It is illegal to dig up bluebells or their bulbs from the wild, or to trade or sell wild bluebell bulbs and seeds.’ I have, therefore, had to buy them from a respectable bulb-merchant.
Oh so hip
Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland
A best kept secret
Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning
